


The Monkey Prince

by Halrloprillalar (prillalar)



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Bedtime Stories, Fluff and Crack, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-22 20:07:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8298902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prillalar/pseuds/Halrloprillalar
Summary: More than anything, Kaoru wished for a special friend.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written 2005.
> 
> Oh, Momo, you suffer for my art!

Once there was a fourteen-year-old boy named Kaidoh Kaoru. Kaoru lived in Tokyo with his father and mother and little brother and they all loved each other very much. But even though Kaoru had such a loving family, he was a lonely boy because he didn't have any good friends.

You see, Kaoru was gruff and somewhat withdrawn, so other boys and girls found it hard to approach him. And when they did, Kaoru didn't realise they were being friendly and so he would be gruff even more and it scared them away.

More than anything, Kaoru wished for a special friend, someone to spend time with and have fun. But after many long years, he had given up hope of finding one.

Instead, Kaoru concentrated on playing tennis. Kaoru was quite good at tennis. He worked hard at improving his play. As well, his gruffness was an asset on the courts because it sometimes intimidated his opponents.

One day, Kaoru was at the public tennis courts, trying to find someone to play tennis with. Everyone was already paired up to play, though, some in singles and some in doubles. Everyone but him. Kaoru didn't sigh, because he was a stoic boy who never let his feelings show, but he wanted to.

He sat down on a bench to wait in case someone showed up and wanted to play with him, but nobody did. After an hour, Kaoru got up to walk home. As he picked up his bag, he noticed a small stuffed animal lying on the bench.

It was a little brown monkey, with shiny black eyes and a shiny black nose and fuzzy brown fur and a curly brown tail. It was the cutest thing that Kaoru had ever seen.

Now, the boys and girls who went to school with Kaoru would never have believed it, since he was so gruff and scary, but Kaoru really liked cute things, especially cute animals. He looked around, but there was no one nearby who it could belong to. So he picked up the stuffed monkey and put it in his jacket pocket.

At home in his room, Kaoru held the monkey in his hand. The fuzzy brown fur was so soft. He rubbed it against his cheek and it tickled his face. Kaoru gave the monkey a squeeze. "Your name is Binky-chan," he said to the monkey. "You'll be my friend, won't you?"

Then Kaoru blushed a little because here he was, talking to a stuffed animal at his age! But it was in his bedroom, so nobody else could hear. Kaoru set Binky-chan on his desk while he did his homework and it was like Binky-chan was helping him get it finished.

Kaoru put Binky-chan in his pocket when he went out for his run. When it got to the part of the run where it was hard to keep going, he reached into his pocket and touched Binky-chan's fur. It gave him an extra burst of energy and he finished the run without stopping.

And when he went to sleep, Kaoru hugged Binky-chan close to him. It made Kaoru feel warm and safe. In the morning, Binky-chan was sort of squashed under Kaoru, but of course Binky-chan didn't complain.

Now that he had Binky-chan, Kaoru felt less lonely. Binky-chan wasn't a real live friend, but somehow he provided companionship for Kaoru. Kaoru took him along to school every day that week, hidden in his bag. Sometimes, in the evenings, Kaoru would talk to Binky-chan about his day.

"Math class was hard," Kaoru said one night. "We had a test and I think I didn't do so well." He pressed Binky-chan's soft fur against his cheek. "You don't care if I'm good at math or not, do you, Binky-chan?"

Binky-chan looked at Kaoru with his shiny black eyes and didn't say a word.

"I wish you could talk with me," Kaoru said. "And hang out with me and play tennis." He hugged Binky-chan tightly. "But I guess it's okay like this. You're so cute, Binky-chan." And Kaoru gave Binky-chan a kiss right on his shiny black nose.

Suddenly, Binky-chan got very heavy and Kaoru had to drop him. And then Binky-chan wasn't there at all. Instead there was a boy! He was about Kaoru's age. He had spiky hair. And he wasn't wearing any clothes.

Kaoru was so surprised, he fell over backwards. When he got up, the boy was still there. In fact, he was right in front of Kaoru. And he was still not wearing any clothes.

"Kaoru-chan," the spiky-haired naked boy said in a loud voice. "You saved me!" He grabbed Kaoru around the middle and hugged him so hard that Kaoru found it hard to breathe.

"What...how...who are you?" Kaoru managed to choke out. He tried to squirm away but he was half-pushed against his desk and he couldn't get any leverage. "You're crushing me."

"Oh, sorry!" the boy said. He let Kaoru go and they sat down side by side on the bed. "It's sort of a long story," he said.

"Did you want to borrow some pants?" Kaoru asked.

The boy looked down at himself. "I wonder where my clothes went!" Kaoru went to his closet and got some underwear and pants and a shirt for the boy.

"Thanks," the boy said and got dressed. "So, Kaoru-chan, like I was saying, it's a long story. See, I was out at the public courts playing tennis against an old woman. When I beat her in straight sets, she got mad and said that since I was as annoying as a monkey, I could just be one from now on. Next thing I knew, I was a stuffed monkey. Then you came along and picked me up and took me home. I guess the kiss broke the curse."

"That really wasn't a very long story," Kaoru said.

"If it weren't for you, Kaoru-chan, I would still be a stuffed monkey." The spiky-haired boy hugged Kaoru again.

Kaoru was very confused. The stuffed monkey he had been carrying around all week was really this boy? His cute little Binky-chan?

"You're the best friend I ever had," the boy said. "I'll stay with you always."

When Kaoru heard that, even though he was still confused, he felt very happy. He had a friend now! One who could actually talk and do stuff with him. And he even played tennis. "What's your name?" he asked the boy.

"Momoshiro Takeshi," the boy said. "But you can call me Momo-chan."

Kaoru thought Momo-chan was a very cute name. "Okay, Momo-chan," he said in his gruff voice. He felt like hugging Momo-chan now, but he was too shy. "Where do you live?"

"Now I live here with you," Momo-chan said. He smiled a big smile at Kaoru. "After being cursed like that, that's the only option."

This didn't make much sense to Kaoru, since Momo-chan had only been a stuffed monkey for about two weeks, but he didn't want to lose his new friend, so he didn't question Momo-chan about it.

"Can we go play tennis now?" Momo-chan asked.

"It's too late at night," Kaoru said. "But we can play tomorrow."

"Then can we eat? I'm starving!"

Kaoru was so happy that there was something he could do to help Momo-chan. "Stay here," he said. "I'll go get some food." He went to the kitchen and took big helpings from the refrigerator and cupboards.

His mother saw him, but since she loved him, she didn't scold him about taking so much food. "You must be in a growth spurt, Kaoru," she said.

Momo-chan ate all of the food in about fifteen minutes. "Is there any more?" he asked. Kaoru couldn't believe it. That was twice as much as he usually ate for dinner.

"I can't take any more or my mom will get suspicious," he told Momo-chan. "I'll get you breakfast in the morning."

"I guess that's okay," Momo-chan said.

"It's late," Kaoru said. "We should go to sleep." Then he realised that there was only one bed. "But there's only one bed," he said with a frown.

"We'll share," Momo-chan said. "Like we did all last week."

That seemed like it would be all right. They changed into pyjamas and got into the bed. It was a tight fit for two of them. Kaoru tried to lie still so he wouldn't bump Momo-chan and make him uncomfortable.

"This isn't like it was," Momo-chan said. He leaned over and put his arms around Kaoru's waist and his head on Kaoru's chest. Kaoru was really surprised by this. "You're supposed to hug me," Momo-chan said. So Kaoru put his arms around Momo-chan's shoulders.

It felt really nice. Momo-chan was warm. It felt friendly to be close like that. It didn't take long for Kaoru to drift off to sleep.

Kaoru was cold when he woke up. Momo-chan had turned over on his side and pulled all the covers with him. Kaoru got up and washed his face. He got dressed and went down to breakfast. When he went back upstairs with the food he snuck for Momo-chan, Momo-chan was still sleeping.

"Wake up," Kaoru said and poked Momo-chan in the side.

"Don't wanna," Momo-chan mumbled and pulled the covers over his head. Kaoru changed into his school uniform.

"I have to go to school," Kaoru said. Momo-chan couldn't stay in Kaoru's room all day. Kaoru's mother was sure to find him there. "You have to come along with me," he told Momo-chan and pulled the covers off of him.

Momo-chan was grumpy at first, but after he ate the breakfast, he was more cheerful. He put on Kaoru's spare school uniform. "You'll have to go out the window," Kaoru said. Kaoru's room was on the second floor, but there was a tree right outside the window that Momo-chan could climb down.

"No problem," Momo-chan said. His voice was very loud. Kaoru hoped that no one else could hear it.

They met outside and walked to school together. Momo-chan got enrolled. Kaoru didn't know how he was going to pay the fees, but Momo-chan told Kaoru not to worry about that.

Momo-chan got placed in Kaoru's class and they sat at desks beside each other.

At lunch, Kaoru shared his bento with Momo-chan. Momo-chan was so hungry that Kaoru didn't get much of it at all. But he was so happy to have Momo-chan there eating lunch with him and talking and laughing, that Kaoru didn't mind being a bit hungry.

After school, it was time for club activities. Kaoru was in the tennis club, of course. Kaoru was so good at tennis that he was a Regular who got to play in matches against other schools at tournaments.

Momo-chan came along and joined the tennis club. Then he and Kaoru played a practice match. Momo-chan turned out to be really good at tennis. It was a close match. They both had a lot of fun playing. In the end, Momo-chan won.

Kaoru felt a little funny about that, because he didn't like to lose, but this was his best friend Momo-chan, so it was probably okay to lose to him.

They went back to Kaoru's house after club. Kaoru figured he could introduce Momo-chan to his parents as a friend from school. Then they would invite him to stay for supper. Momo-chan would just have to sneak back inside afterwards.

Kaoru's family liked Momo-chan a lot, which made Kaoru very happy, even if Momo-chan ate so much at supper that Kaoru couldn't have seconds.

They spent the evening doing their homework. Kaoru didn't really like studying, but he tried hard at it anyway because he knew he ought to. Momo-chan didn't like studying either.

"Let me copy your answers, okay, Kaoru-chan?" Momo-chan said and smiled a big smile at Kaoru.

Kaoru felt kind of guilty about it, but Momo-chan was his friend so he let him copy the homework. Momo-chan gave Kaoru a big hug and Kaoru hugged him back.

"You're the best friend ever," Momo-chan said and that made Kaoru blush.

Then it was time for Kaoru's run. He thought that Momo-chan would want to come along, but Momo-chan said he would rather stay in. So Kaoru went out alone. It was his first run in over a week without Binky-chan in his pocket and Kaoru felt a little sad about that. But Momo-chan would be there when he got back, so that was something to look forward to.

When Kaoru went up to his room after his run, Momo-chan was watching TV with the volume really loud. Kaoru turned it down. "You can't be so loud," he said to Momo-chan. "Especially when I'm not here. You might get caught!"

"It's okay," Momo-chan said. "Nobody came in. Come on and watch this movie with me."

It was about the time that Kaoru usually went to bed. But he stayed up and watched the movie with Momo-chan. Momo-chan put his arm around Kaoru's shoulders while they watched and that felt good. But they were up until midnight and Kaoru kept yawning.

They snuggled down in the bed and finally Kaoru could go to sleep.

Kaoru didn't sleep late because Momo-chan's snoring woke him up at about 5:30 AM. Kaoru was so tired, he could hardly stay awake in class. He thought he might get a rest at lunch, but Momo-chan talked to him the whole time. Kaoru didn't get much to eat again.

By the time tennis club came around, Kaoru was feeling kind of grouchy. When Momo-chan teased Kaoru about being grumpy, Kaoru snapped at Momo-chan. But then he apologized. Momo-chan was his friend. He should always be nice to him. Momo-chan hugged him and then everything was okay again. They played another match and this time Kaoru won.

Kaoru enjoyed having a friend, after so long without one. It was nice to eat lunch with Momo-chan and do homework together. They played tennis a lot, sometimes at club and sometimes at the public courts. Sometimes Momo-chan won and sometimes Kaoru won. And at night they slept curled up around each other like two spoons in a drawer.

After a week, though, Kaoru was feeling even more gruff and grouchy than usual. He never seemed to get enough sleep. Momo-chan was always snoring and taking all the covers. One night, he rolled over and pushed Kaoru out of bed altogether.

Kaoru never got enough lunch and it was taking all his pocket money to keep Momo-chan fed snacks after school. Momo-chan was so loud that Kaoru had had to hide him in the closet three times when his father came to see why he was making so much noise. And Momo-chan hugged Kaoru all the time at school and made people stare at them.

Kaoru still enjoyed playing tennis with Momo-chan, but Momo-chan could be pretty obnoxious during the game. He liked to show off and yell all the time. When he won, he'd tease Kaoru about it.

Maybe Kaoru was just not used to having a friend. Probably he just wasn't being very patient. He resolved to try harder not to be gruff with Momo-chan.

The next day, Kaoru was practising his tennis at club time. Momo-chan accidentally spilled a bottle of water over Kaoru, so Kaoru went back to the clubhouse to change his shirt. While he was in there, he overheard two of his senpais from the club talking.

"Maybe we should put Momo-chan on the Regulars," one said. "He's a really good player."

"But there isn't an open space," the other one said.

"We can replace Kaoru," the first senpai said. "Momo-chan is just as good as him and Kaoru is so gruff and scary. He probably wouldn't care anyhow. Momo-chan is much more fun to have around."

Kaoru felt like he was in an elevator that suddenly dropped fifty floors really fast. There was no way he was giving up his Regulars spot, even to Momo-chan! But what could he do? It wasn't his decision.

After school, Momo-chan wanted to go out and eat hamburgers. Kaoru bought Momo-chan ten hamburgers and then he was almost out of money. "Why are you so quiet?" Momo-chan asked as he wiped ketchup off his chin. "I mean, you're always quiet but now you're not even listening to me."

"Sorry," Kaoru said.

"Do you want to go play tennis now?" Momo-chan asked. "Let's go to the public courts."

Kaoru really didn't feel like it, but he always did whatever Momo-chan wanted. They went out but they had to wait for a free court. Momo-chan took Kaoru's last few coins and went to buy some juice.

While Kaoru waited for him to come back, he looked around. There on the next bench was a really old man holding a tennis racquet. Kaoru went over to him. "Excuse me," he said. "Are you looking for someone to play with?"

"Yes," the old man said.

"Would you like to play against my friend?" Kaoru pointed to Momo-chan, who was coming back with two cans of juice.

The old man agreed. Kaoru went and took his juice from Momo-chan. "I think it would be nice if you would play against that old man," Kaoru said. "He needs an opponent. You and I can play afterwards."

"Sure," Momo-chan said. When there was a free court, he and the old man started their game.

Momo-chan won. The old man couldn't even get a single point. After the game, Momo-chan taunted the old man like he always taunted Kaoru. Kaoru drank his juice and waited.

When the old man had left, Kaoru went out onto the court. He picked up the little stuffed monkey that was lying there.

"Binky-chan!" he said and rubbed the fluffy fur against his cheek. Then Kaoru put the stuffed monkey in his pocket and went home.


End file.
